QuakeScout
Magnitude3.7

Reviewed by USGSPeru29y ago

M3.7 earthquake 46 km WNW of San Juan, Peru

Tuesday, March 4, 1997, 16:42:10 UTC · 15.257°S, 75.585°W

A magnitude 3.7 earthquake struck 46 km WNW of San Juan, Peru on Tuesday, March 4, 1997, 16:42:10 UTC, at a depth of 44.7 km (shallow).

Magnitude
3.7
Minor · mb
Depth
45 km
Shallow
Felt reports
0
Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking
—
No ShakeMap
PAGER alert
None
Not issued
Tsunami
No flag
USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquake

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

5 tons of TNT

That is about 1/2,814 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 89 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

5 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: shallow

45 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

Did You Feel It?

Where it was felt

No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.

I felt it — report to USGS ↗

USGS PAGER estimate

Who was exposed to shaking

USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 50 km

USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 208 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 65 km E of this epicenter
  2. 7.737 km SSW of Atico, PeruAugust 6, 1913 · 243 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.760 km SW of Changuillo, PeruNovember 12, 1996 · 31 km N of this epicenter
  4. 7.121 km SSE of Nazca, PeruJanuary 15, 1960 · 82 km E of this epicenter
  5. 6.913 km SSW of San Juan, PeruOctober 3, 1916 · 152 km E of this epicenter
  6. 6.7165 km SSW of Atiquipa, PeruJuly 28, 1913 · 222 km S of this epicenter
  7. 6.7103 km SSW of Atico, PeruSeptember 13, 1919 · 260 km SE of this epicenter
  8. 6.652 km SSE of Atico, PeruAugust 7, 1944 · 274 km SE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 27 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 320 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1821

    Camana, Ocona, Caraveli

    10 Jul 1821 · 296 km away · intensity VIII

    162 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  2. 1914

    Pararca,Paysa,Colta,Oyala

    2 Dec 1914 · 256 km away · intensity X

    34 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  3. 1813

    Ica

    30 Mar 1813 · 130 km away · intensity VII

    32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)

  4. 1942M8.2

    Ica, Nazca

    24 Aug 1942 · 53 km away · intensity IX

    30 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1996M7.7

    Chincha Alta, Acari, Nazca, Marcona

    12 Nov 1996 · 31 km away · intensity VIII

    14 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami

  6. 1981M5.2

    Central

    22 Jun 1981 · 259 km away

    10 deaths$5 million damage

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

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